Valve adjuster and driver.



- E. 1. RUSSELL.

VALVE ADJUSTER AND DRIVER.

. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 16. I912- RENEWEP FEB-3.1915. 1,153,709. 1 1 PatentedSept. 14, 1915.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Ill;

E. L. RUSSELL.

VALVE ADJUSTER AND DRIVER. APPLICATION FILED MAR. I6. 1912. RENEWED FEB. 8. 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

1,154 309. PatentedSept.14,1915.

. My, W 4.

. fldwin-Xfimssell citizen of the United States, residing at era EDWIN L. RUSSELL, 015 CLEVELAND, OHIO.

VALVE ADJUSTER AND DRIVER.

masses.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept, 141:, 1915.

Application filed March 16, 1912, Serial No. 584,312. Renewed February 8, 1915. Serial No. 6,804.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN L. RUssELL,a

Cleveland,.in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Valve Adjuster and Driver, of which the following ,is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple connection between a valve or other seated member and its driving member, by

means of which, upon undue resistance of the valve to movement along its seat, the valve will be given automatically a suflicient initial movement fromits seat to be relieved therefrom.

The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention.

Figure 1 is. an axial section of a rotary valve of the ordinary tapered plug type equipped with my improved device; Fig. 2 a section on line 22 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 an axial section of another form, and Fig. 4: a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, 10 indicates an axially tapered valve mounted in a seat or casing 11. The driving shaft 12 is held against axial movement by any suit I able means, such as, for instance, flanges 13 and casing 14, and is provided with a tubular head 15 which, by the multiplicity of helical cuts or slots 16 is formed into a plurality of helical spring fingers 17 which, at their free ends are projected into a pocket 18 formed in-the end of the valve 10 and secured to the valve by any suitable means, such as pins or screws 19. These helices are then brought into contact with each other before tempering.

The operation is as follows: Shaft 12 is driven in the direction indicated by the arrow and under normal conditionsvalve 10 will be driven in the same direction through the medium of the springs 17. If there be undue resistance ofthe valve 10 to movement along its seat (2'. 6., rotative movement) there willbe'a slight forward movement of shaft 12 relative to the free ends of the spring fingers 17, thus resulting in an axial projection of the free ends of the fingers 17 and thus serving to project the valve 10 axially away from its seat. If the shaft be rotated in the opposite direction, and there be undue resistance of the valve to motion,

the shaft-ends of the helices will be wound up, or tightened, relative to the valve ends and there will be a conification of the nest of helices which will result in an axial elonga- In Figs. 3 and-4, 10 indicates an axially tapered rotary valve seated in a correspondingly tapered casing or seat 11. The rotary driving shaft 12 is held against axial movement by any suitable means such as flanges 13 and casing 14. Wrapped around the end of shaft 12 is a spring helix 150 one 'end of which is attached to shaft 12 and the other end of which is projected into a pocket 18, formed in the ad acent end of valve 10, and anchored at .160 to said valve. The internal diameter of the helix 150 exceeds the external diameter of that portion of shaft 12 which is projected into it and the external diameter of the helix is the same as the bore of pocket 18.. The several turns of the helix 150 are in contact with each other and the adjacent surfaces are preferably lubricated as to be readily movable upon each other.

If the shaft 12 be rotated in .the direction indicated by the arrow and there be no abnormal resistance offered by valve 10 to move ment along its seat, the valve will be driven along its seat without any shifting of the driving end of the helix relative to the jacent coils of the helix thereby decreasing the diameter of the helix and at the same time shoving the adjacent coils of the helix, and consequently the driven end thereof, axially of the shaft so as to thus lift the valve 10 from its seat enough to overcome the abnormal resistance to movement along its seat whereupon the helix will tend to resume its normal condition and bring the valve 10 into synchronism with the shaft. If the shaft 12 be rotated in the opposite direction, as for instance the case would be if the structure were in an internal combustion engine where the parts came into m0- mentary' rest with the piston on the compressing side of the dead center, and if under such conditions there were abnormal resist ance to rotative movement of the valve 10, the driving end of the helix 150 would be shifted relative to the driven end and, as there can be no increase in diameter of the helix, there would of necessity be an axial lengthening. of the helix and a consequent axial shifting of the driven end of the helix thus serving to drive the valve away from its scat enough to release it from its abnormal resistance, whereupon the spring of the helix would tend to bring the parts into their normal relationship again,

I claim as my invention: 1. The combination of a seat member, a

seated member "movable both along and away fromithe sea-t member, a driving mem' ber movable m the direction of movement of the seated member along the seat'l-mem-i her, index-spring finger connected :at: one .1 end tothe driving member, 'andatf'the other end tothe seatrmember andlying at an angle both to the direction of movement of: the seated member along the seat member;-

and to the direction of movement of the seated member away from the seat member seat, and axially tapered rotary seated member therein, a rotary driving member, and a connection between the driving member and the seated member comprising one or more helical spring fingers anchored at one end to the driving member and anchored at the other end to the seated member.

3. The combination of an axially tapered I seat, an axially tapered rotary seated member therein, a rotary driving member, and a connection between the driving member and the seated member consisting of a tube of spring metal slit at one end with a multiplicity of helical slots'into a plurality of helical spring fingers, said tube and fingers being secured at their opposite ends to the driving member and seated member.

4:. The combination of anaxially tapered seat, a correspondingly tapered rotary seated member mounted thereon, a rotary driving shaft, and a springhelix having helical portions in contact with other helical portions, one end of said helix being end i of said. helix being anchored to the driving shaft and with the axis of the helix -'in"substa ntial alinement with the axis of the shaft and seated member.

, 5. The combination of a seat, a corresponding-rotary seated member mounted thereon, a rotary driving shaft, and a spring ,helixhaving helical portions in contact with other helical portions, one end of said helix beingamhored ;to the seated member and the othernendrof said helix being anchored .to the driving -shaft.and with the axis of I the helix insubstantial alinement with the axis of the shaft and seated member.

The combination ofan axiallyv tapered seat, an axially tapered rotary seated member therein capable of axial movement relative to the :seat member, a rotary driving member, connecting means between said seat member and'driving member whereby on a change in resistance of the seated member to rotary movement said seated member will be automatically moved relative to the seat anchored to'the seated member and the other member in an axial direction said means comprising a torsional helical spring.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal at IHdlaHfiDOllS, Indiana,

this 9th day of March, A. D. one thousandnine hundred and 12.

EDWIN L. RUSSELL.

Witnessesg ARTHUR M. H001), G. B. SGHLEY. 

